Hello. I know html and css and I can code a bit in C++ and some other languages but I've never done anything in PHP and I've been hired to create a shopping cart for a website.

Is PHP what I want? and if so....

What should my first steps be?

Thank you in advance for the advice.

missing-score

01-08-2006, 11:08 PM

yes this is possible in PHP.

Hmm, I wonder if you really should have taken on a job to create a shopping cart if you dont know what you are doing. It would take you at least 2-3 months to learn the bare minimum of skills you need to complete the site, really you should have experience to take on something like this.

Maybe you should see if you can hire someone else to do the project or apologise to your client, you are almost certain to get a bad reputation if you try and do something like this when you dont know PHP.

How'd you get this job when you literally don't know the first thing about it?

Here's something that might help, or you can use the same site to reappropriate someone else's completed shopping cart script: http://php.resourceindex.com/Documentation/Examples_and_Tutorials/Shopping_Carts/

Hmm, I wonder if you really should have taken on a job to create a shopping cart if you dont know what you are doing.

Will it take 2-3 months if I use CubeCart?

Velox Letum

01-09-2006, 07:02 AM

If you "use" CubeCart, it'd be instant, wouldn't it? I have to agree with ralph and missing-score, you shouldn't have taken the job, especially if you don't know the first thing about what you're doing. That's happened in the past, and look at the messes those people have made. You should really turn down the job, learn PHP (and write secure code), then try it. It might not be such a big deal if it was a CMS or something, but a shopping cart where people's money and private information could be stolen is a whole different can of worms. I'd suggest you advise they use a pre-made shopping cart, some commercial shopping cart solution...even PayPal's.

GJay

01-09-2006, 08:15 AM

Setting up (and perhaps customising/integrating with an existing site) a pre-made shopping cart would be fairly trivial for someone with an ounce of 'tehncical' knowledge, and there are enough free ecom products out there.

cmw000

01-09-2006, 11:17 PM

I understand your concern for my job; I see what you mean. But as it happens, I'm already a trusted employee and I happen to be the only person within the company with any computer expertise. Also, it was understood that I didn't know what I was doing. My employer simply wishes for me to finish the job as fast as I can.

So please allow me to reiterate my question:

I wish to integrate a canned e-commerce product into an existing website. It sounds as if someone with my particular computer skills would have no problem doing this task. Can anyone forsee a reason why I should not spend $70 on CubeCart? I am simply looking for a solution that will allow me a bit of customization so that I can make the product match my aesthetic and functional ideals.

Velox Letum

01-10-2006, 12:33 AM

If you just want to integrate it, then it shouldn't take much. Some edits to the templates would probably be it. Never used CubeCart myself though.